Prime Minister Antonio Costa said on Tuesday he would request assistance from other European countries and Russian Federation if the blazes do not abate by next Monday.
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In this photo taken late Tuesday, Aug. 9 2016, firefighters battle a fire that reached the old center of Funchal, the capital of Portugal’s Madeira island.
Fanned by unpredictable, high winds on the mountainous island amid unusually hot, dry weather, the blazes have created apocalyptic scenes, disrupted flights and left residents fearful for their homes.
“Roughly a thousand people had to be evacuated from homes and hotels”, among them both residents and tourists, according to Funchal mayor Paulo Cafofo, quoted by the Lusa news agency. Most of the injuries were due to smoke inhalation. One of the seriously injured patients has been flown to the Portuguese capital, Lisbon, for treatment.
Holidaymakers from Britain and Germany had to be evacuated from their hotels and were being put up by local authorities, diplomatic sources said. Eighty people remain hospitalized, he said.
By Wednesday, after a rough night, they checked into another hotel to continue the vacation they had planned for six months. Mainland Portugal is also in the grips of dozens of wildfires, fueled by high temperatures and strong winds.
Public servants have been given the day off to assist efforts to relocate people away from the fires.
Avelino Viveiros visits his house that burned yesterday at Curral dos Romeiros during the forest fires in Funchal, Madeira island, Portugal, on Wednesday.
The three perished in their homes close to the historic centre of the capital Funchal, while a hotel overlooking the town was destroyed and other buildings were licked by flames, officials said.
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The authorities say around 3,000 firefighters are trying to extinguish hundreds of forest fires across the country.
